What to image in May with the Celestron Origin Mark II
The last of the galaxies with the first of the summer globulars: Hercules, M3 and M5 are bright, small and forgiving of a bright sky. Darkness is short north of about 50°, so short, bright targets suit the month.
Moon in May 2027: new on 6 May, full on 20 May. Broadband targets (galaxies, clusters) want the week either side of new; emission nebulae behind a dual-band filter tolerate the rest.
51 targets transit near midnight in May. From a suburban sky the Origin Mark II gets a solid image of 45 of them in under an hour each; 6 need longer, or a darker sky, or several nights. Times below use the recommended filter and 10 s subs.
| Target | Type | Bortle 4 | Bortle 6 | Bortle 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M3Canes Venatici | Globular cluster | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 9 min57 subs |
| M5Serpens | Globular cluster | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 10 min60 subs |
| Butterfly ClusterScorpius | Open cluster | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs |
| Ptolemy's ClusterScorpius | Open cluster | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs |
| Hercules ClusterHercules | Globular cluster | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 7 min42 subs |
| M23Sagittarius | Open cluster | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs |
| M62Ophiuchus | Globular cluster | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 8 min48 subs |
| M80Scorpius | Globular cluster | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 10 min63 subs |
| M92Hercules | Globular cluster | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 6 min34 subs |
| Omega CentauriCentaurus | Globular cluster | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs |
| Cat's Eye NebulaDraco | Planetary nebula | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 11 min69 subs |
| Turtle NebulaHercules | Planetary nebula | 5 min30 subs | 5 min30 subs | 11 min69 subs |
| M12Ophiuchus | Globular cluster | 5 min30 subs | 5 min32 subs | 14 min87 subs |
| M19Ophiuchus | Globular cluster | 5 min30 subs | 8 min47 subs | 22 min132 subs |
| M14Ophiuchus | Globular cluster | 5 min30 subs | 8 min51 subs | 23 min139 subs |
| Spindle GalaxyDraco | Galaxy | 5 min30 subs | 9 min53 subs | 23 min140 subs |
| M10Ophiuchus | Globular cluster | 5 min30 subs | 10 min61 subs | 29 min173 subs |
| M94Canes Venatici | Galaxy | 5 min30 subs | 10 min63 subs | 29 min175 subs |
| M68Hydra | Globular cluster | 5 min33 subs | 12 min70 subs | 33 min197 subs |
| M9Ophiuchus | Globular cluster | 6 min35 subs | 12 min75 subs | 35 min212 subs |
| Black Eye GalaxyComa Berenices | Galaxy | 6 min36 subs | 13 min76 subs | 35 min213 subs |
| M53Coma Berenices | Globular cluster | 6 min36 subs | 13 min78 subs | 37 min223 subs |
| Centaurus ACentaurus | Galaxy | 7 min40 subs | 15 min90 subs | 44 min263 subs |
| Southern PinwheelHydra | Galaxy | 8 min46 subs | 17 min103 subs | 50 min299 subs |
| Sombrero GalaxyVirgo | Galaxy | 8 min48 subs | 17 min104 subs | 49 min296 subs |
| M59Virgo | Galaxy | 8 min51 subs | 18 min106 subs | 50 min298 subs |
| Whale GalaxyCanes Venatici | Galaxy | 9 min52 subs | 20 min120 subs | 59 min353 subs |
| Whirlpool GalaxyCanes Venatici | Galaxy | 9 min57 subs | 21 min129 subs | 1 h 02 min375 subs |
| M107Ophiuchus | Globular cluster | 9 min57 subs | 22 min130 subs | 1 h 04 min383 subs |
| M60Virgo | Galaxy | 10 min61 subs | 22 min130 subs | 1 h 02 min371 subs |
| M87Virgo | Galaxy | 10 min63 subs | 23 min138 subs | 1 h 06 min397 subs |
| M106Canes Venatici | Galaxy | 10 min61 subs | 24 min142 subs | 1 h 10 min423 subs |
| Needle GalaxyComa Berenices | Galaxy | 10 min62 subs | 24 min144 subs | 1 h 11 min429 subs |
| M49Virgo | Galaxy | 11 min67 subs | 25 min152 subs | 1 h 14 min445 subs |
| M4Scorpius | Globular cluster | 11 min69 subs | 27 min163 subs | 1 h 21 min486 subs |
| M84Virgo | Galaxy | 13 min79 subs | 29 min175 subs | 1 h 24 min505 subs |
| M85Coma Berenices | Galaxy | 14 min83 subs | 31 min185 subs | 1 h 29 min536 subs |
| M89Virgo | Galaxy | 14 min85 subs | 32 min190 subs | 1 h 32 min552 subs |
| M86Virgo | Galaxy | 14 min83 subs | 32 min191 subs | 1 h 34 min564 subs |
| Sunflower GalaxyCanes Venatici | Galaxy | 15 min91 subs | 36 min216 subs | 1 h 48 min648 subs |
| M88Coma Berenices | Galaxy | 17 min105 subs | 40 min240 subs | 1 h 58 min708 subs |
| Antennae GalaxiesCorvus | Galaxy | 19 min114 subs | 44 min262 subs | 2 h 09 min774 subs |
| M100Coma Berenices | Galaxy | 22 min131 subs | 51 min306 subs | 2 h 32 min911 subs |
| M90Virgo | Galaxy | 23 min137 subs | 55 min331 subs | 2 h 46 min998 subs |
| M58Virgo | Galaxy | 24 min145 subs | 57 min341 subs | 2 h 50 min1,019 subs |
| M99Coma Berenices | Galaxy | 26 min155 subs | 1 h 01 min367 subs | 3 h 03 min1,098 subs |
| M61Virgo | Galaxy | 29 min172 subs | 1 h 08 min409 subs | 3 h 25 min1,228 subs |
| M98Coma Berenices | Galaxy | 33 min200 subs | 1 h 23 min496 subs | 4 h 12 min1,515 subs |
| M91Coma Berenices | Galaxy | 35 min208 subs | 1 h 24 min503 subs | 4 h 14 min1,522 subs |
| Pinwheel GalaxyUrsa Major | Galaxy | 39 min235 subs | 1 h 40 min600 subs | 5 h 11 min1,864 subs |
| Abell 39Hercules | Planetary nebula | 4 h 56 min1,778 subs | 13 h4,766 subs | 42 h15,088 subs |
Other telescopes in May: Seestar S50 · Seestar S50 Pro · Seestar S30 · Seestar S30 Pro · DWARF 3 · DWARF mini · Draco · DWARF II · Vespera II · Vespera Pro · Vespera 3 · Vespera Pro 2 · eQuinox 2 · Odyssey · Origin
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